Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray has not played since suffering a torn ACL during a Week 14 game last season against the New England Patriots.
Arizona had designated Murray for return from injured reserve last month, setting up a three-week window for the team to decide to activate the former No. 1 pick or sit him for the remainder of the season.
Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon has made a decision on this front. The first-year head coach told reporters on Monday that Murray will start next week against the Atlanta Falcons should everything go according to plan during practice.
This announcement comes after Arizona was humiliated in a 27-0 loss to the Cleveland Browns on Sunday with rookie mid-round pick Clayton Tune starting. The Cards put up less than 60 total yards of offense in a brutal showing.
Murray had been making his way back from the devastating knee injury over the past couple weeks. In fact, he did not appear on the Cardinals’ injury report ahead of Sunday’s game against the Browns. It made sense not to throw him back into the mix against a dominant Browns defense that ultimately recorded a whopping seven sacks of Tune.
Kyler Murray’s return for the Arizona Cardinals and his future in the desert
At 1-8 on the season, Arizona is going nowhere fast. In fact, it has to be focused more on the evaluation process at quarterback with the team currently slated to select No. 1 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft and presumably eyeing USC’s Caleb Williams.
It was just recently that Fox Sports NFL insider Jay Glazer reported that the Cardinals still plan on building around Murray despite his struggles last season and a bloated contract.
- Kyler Murray contract: 5 years, $230.5 million contract
By playing Murray, Arizona is risking injury. He has north of $50 million guaranteed for injury remaining on his contract. If he’s not able to pass a physical once the new league year opens in March, that guarantees the former No. 1 pick the total sum.
It was even as recently as October that various reports indicated Murray is facing an uncertain future with the rebuilding Cardinals. In addition to currently boasting the No. 1 pick in the upcoming draft, Arizona also has the Houston Texans’ first-round selection. There are obviously avenues to find a quarterback in what is a loaded class at that position.
Despite this, Arizona’s brass has said everything right relating to the embattled signal caller in recent months as he makes his way back from injury.
“[I’m] really pleased with where he’s at, kind of how he’s handled things. I think that’s one of the main reasons you see him as a captain,” Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzing told reporters ahead of Week 1. “I certainly view him as a franchise quarterback and a leader of this organization, and I think his teammates do, too. So, I was really happy for him to kind of get that nod. It’s been good.”
Arizona’s new brass will now presumably get an eight-game sample size as it relates to Murray and how he looks in this offense.
In no way does Monday’s announcement mean that Murray is the long-term solution in Arizona. He butted heads with then-head coach Kliff Kingsbury and general manager Steve Keim last season before they were fired. There are questions over his maturity level.
Meanwhile, regression has been the name of the game for the 26-year-old former Oklahoma standout. He recorded 14 touchdowns compared to seven interceptions a season ago after accounting for 70 scores and 34 picks in his first three NFL seasons.
The onus is now on Kyler Murray to prove his worth to the Cardinals over the final two months or so of the 2023 NFL season.